According to the UN, North Korea has formally asked for international help to deal with the aftermath of yesterday's train explosion which killed a large number of people and razed a large part of the town of Ryongchon.
The UN's Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that the formal request had been received this afternoon.
More details have emerged today of the scale of the devastation.
The Irish aid agency, Concern, says it has been told that 150 people died. However, diplomatic sources in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, say the figure is much higher.
Reports indicate the blast happened when two wagons carrying dynamite hit a live wire, sparking a massive explosion. It happened at a station in the town of Ryongchon not far from the west coast.
A journalist with the news agency AFP said an area of one kilometre in diameter had been completely flattened by the blast.
According to the Red Cross, more than 8,000 homes were damaged or destroyed, and the agency says it is possible that many people are trapped beneath the rubble.
Earlier, the US said it was willing to help if required.
